Giesbrecht Commits to Hometown Timberwolves

Athletics Women's Basketball
January 23, 2017

Above: UNBC women's basketball coach Sergey Shchepotkin is joined by new recruit Kyla Giesbrecht.

PRINCE GEORGE - The University of Northern British Columbia women’s basketball program continues to utilize the Junior Timberwolves program as a pipeline, committing guard Kyla Giesbrecht for the 2017-2018 season.

Playing her high school basketball with Cedars Christian, and spending a number of years with the UNBC development program, Giesbrecht is looking forward to wearing the Green and Gold.

“I’ve always looked up to the players on the UNBC teams,” she said. “I come to all the home games, and I have played Junior Timberwolves for many years. To be on the actual Timberwolves team will be really exciting.”

T-Wolves coach Sergey Shchepotkin identified Giesbrecht for her willingness to do anything on the court to be successful.

“I love Kyla’s mindset on the court,” he said. “She works hard, and is willing to penetrate to the paint. Her aggressiveness is evident on offence and defence.”

Having played in three provincial championship tournaments with the Cedars Christian Eagles, Giesbrecht’s desire to play at the next level grew as her high school career progressed.

“I started playing basketball really young,” she said. “Once I started playing senior, I realized this is really fun and that I want to go far with this. I could see it was an option, so I continued to work hard because I wanted it.”

She intends to study social work at UNBC, while continuing to develop on the court under Shchepotkin’s tutelage.

“Year one would just be putting in lots of work and effort to improve my skills,” she said. “I am not really worried about the minutes, but my goal is definitely to improve.”

Shchepotkin referenced Giesbrecht’s coachability as a sign she will be a factor for the Timberwolves for years to come.

“Kyla is the type of person and teammate we are looking for,” he said. “She is team-oriented, unselfish, and very positive. Her leadership on her high school team was something that was attractive to our program.”

Giesbrecht said the chance to play at the U Sports level, in her hometown, was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.

“I’m really excited,” she said. “I put lots of work in, so to be offered a spot is really exciting.

“I’m an aggressive player, which sometimes isn’t helpful when I get fouls. I like to drive, I can shoot it, and I work hard on defence.”